IICA Executive

Angela is a partner of Australian law firm Quay Law Partners. Angela has over 20 years’ experience as a partner in private practice and in senior Australian Commonwealth Government roles. She has broad commercial law expertise in transactional and regulatory matters, with a focus on telecommunications, media and technology, as well as data and cybersecurity.

Angela’s areas of expertise include assisting clients in making submissions to Government consultation processes on regulatory reform (particularly in the areas of digital markets, content regulation and privacy), providing advice to clients in investigations and interactions with government agencies and assisting clients in obtaining licences and regulatory approvals, as well as advising corporates regarding compliance with the Competition and Consumer Act, the Telecommunications Act, the Broadcasting Services Act and other Australian law and regulation, including consumer protection and privacy issues relating to telecommunications, technology and ad tech.

As well as being President of the International Institute of Communications, Australian Chapter, Angela is a member of the auDA Licence Review Panel (auDA is Australia’s domain name administrator).

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Michael Coonan is a media and communications policy and regulatory leader with experience in both government and industry roles.

Michael joined Free TV Australia in January 2024 as Director of Public Policy, having previously held policy, regulatory and government affairs roles at SBS and Foxtel. Prior to Foxtel, Michael worked at the Australian Communications and Media Authority, in both broadcasting and telecommunications regulation.

Michael is Vice President of the Australian Chapter of the International Institute of Communications, and a member of the Board of the Restless Dance Theatre.

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Debra Richards is Director, Production Policy, APAC for Netflix.

Prior to joining Netflix Debra was the CEO of Ausfilm.  She has over 25 years communications & media industry experience including as the CEO of the Australian Subscription Television and Radio Association (ASTRA), the industry association for subscription television. She also spent over 13 years with the broadcasting regulator then the Australian Broadcasting Authority (& Tribunal).

Debra has been involved in screen content policy and production industry issues in Australia during her working life as regulator, stakeholder or advocate. These include local content, classification of content, sports rights, copyright, digital conversion and new delivery platforms. Debra is also an Adjunct Professor for Boston University (Film and Media in Australia) and a marriage celebrant.

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Joanne Ryan is the Managing Director of Infodec Communications. She has extensive experience working in the media industry in Australia.

Prior to starting her own communications company in 2009, she worked for several years as a Corporate Development Advisor with NewsCorp Australia. Joanne also represented the organisation to Government and was a member of a number of industry committees including the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Intellectual Property consultative group.

Infodec Communications was established in 2009.  The company has continued to expand, supporting various clients including government agencies, SMEs, industry groups and individuals with strategic communications and public relations services.

Jo's formal qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts (Communications) and a Master of International Studies from the University of Sydney.

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Screen Producers Australia

With over fifteen years of experience in communications, public policy, and stakeholder engagement, Jane has provided strategic advice and successfully delivered projects in a public policy context.

She has successfully provided executive officer services, including stakeholder relations, political strategy, and comprehensive communications services, to a Member of Parliament (MP). Jane has also assisted with policy development and committee work.

As a highly skilled versatile professional, Jane has extensive experience in various communication areas, including media liaison, speechwriting, social media content, and submission writing. Furthermore, she has organised a diverse array of events, from corporate forums and ministerial meetings to fundraising dinners, stakeholder forums, and press conferences, and even national campaign roadshows and events.

Jane's personal strengths include highly effective organisational skills, a problem-solving approach, strong teamwork abilities, initiative, and a strong work ethic.

Gilbert + Tobin

Rebecca Dunn is a partner in Gilbert + Tobin’s Tech+IP group specialising in Intellectual Property.

She is an experienced intellectual property litigator who has worked on some of the leading copyright cases in Australia. In addition to copyright, her focus is on trade mark litigation, Australian Consumer Law litigation and defamation.

She advises clients across industries including health care, media and entertainment in relation to the multiple legal issues associated with branding. Rebecca has particular expertise in the online space in relation to copyright, consumer law, social media, privacy, data protection and defamation.

She has worked on a variety of enforcement matters for both national and international clients including the film and music industries. Ms Dunn has litigated cases in the Supreme and Federal Courts and at appellate level in the NSW Court of Appeal, the Full Federal Court and the High Court of Australia.

Ms Dunn is the current President of the Communications and Media Law Association, a member of the Copyright Society of Australia and the Intellectual Property Society of Australia and New Zealand.

Ms Dunn has a Bachelor of Law (First Class Honours) from the University of Sydney and a Bachelor of Arts (Communications Studies) from the University of Newcastle. Rebecca was admitted as a solicitor in 2005. Rebecca also has a Masters of Research in issues relating to social media law and democracy.

nbn™, Australia

Ms Alderson has worked in telecommunications regulation for over 20 years. As General Manager, Regulatory at NBN Co she leads the consumer and network regulatory functions with key focus on universal service, spectrum, security and consumer policy as well as a broad range of associated telecommunications policy and regulatory issues. Prior to joining NBN Co she had extensive experience as a telecommunications and regulatory lawyer working for a broad range of domestic and international clients. She also worked in Government telecommunications policy roles for the (then) Department of Communications.

Ms Alderson has a Bachelor of Law and Media Communications from Macquarie University.

Holding Redlich

Ian Robertson is a corporate, media and regulatory lawyer who heads the media and communications practice of national law firm Holding Redlich. He is also the Chair of Holding Redlich. He became a partner of Holding Redlich in Melbourne in 1990 and established the firm’s Sydney office in 1994.

Ian has held a number of public and private sector Board appointments including President of the Board of the Victorian Government screen agency, Film Victoria, Deputy Chair of the Australian Government screen agency, Screen Australia, board member of the Australian Broadcasting Authority, director and Chair of Ausfilm, director and Deputy Chair of Film Australia Limited, and director of the ASX-listed screen production and distribution group, Beyond International Limited. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Squire Patton Boggs

James Konidaris has more than a decade of legal and regulatory experience in communications and technology, spanning the UK, Europe, Australia and the Middle East.

James advises on a broad range of regulatory, policy and commercial matters and disputes, including international and multijurisdictional advice and transactions. He has represented some of the largest companies in the IT, communications, media, financial services, consumer goods and energy sectors, as well as public authorities and not-for-profit organisations.

James is also a committee member of the Australian Chapter of the International Institute of Communications, is co-author of the EU Electronic Communications Code Handbook (Bloomsbury Professional) and is a contributing author to the LexisPSL TMT Practice Note on Radio Spectrum Regulation.

Australian Communications and Media Authority

Sarah Mackie has more than a decade of experience in legal and regulatory frameworks and strategic communications across the public and private sectors.

At the Australian Communications and Media Authority, Sarah is a Senior Regulatory Engagement Officer where she works across a range of stakeholder engagement and consumer education priorities to combat scams and other unsolicited communications. She is responsible for driving strategic relationships at a domestic and international level, and consults with a diverse range of stakeholders, from technical specialists to government agencies and international regulators.

Sarah has a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Media & Communications from the Queensland University of Technology, as well as a Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice.

Clayton Utz

Tim Webb's focus as an experienced commercial litigator is helping clients resolve disputes. He explores clients' legal and non-legal drivers, then develops and implements strategies to achieve those objectives. He also has an extensive advisory practice.

Tim's special interest is intellectual property, and he assists clients in both contentious and non-contentious matters. Tim advises across the spectrum of intellectual property, including copyright, trade marks, patents, designs, advertising, confidential information, domain names and anti-counterfeiting. He has acted for clients in landmark Australian test cases for both copyright and designs. Tim is also the joint head of the firm's Trade Mark and Brand Protection Group which is responsible for all matters relating to the registration of trade marks including clearance searches, applications, renewals, oppositions and non-use applications.

His clients come from a range of industries, although Tim is well recognised for his expertise in the technology, media and telecommunications sectors. He also has extensive experience working with public sector clients.

ADMA

Sarah Waladan is the new Head of Regulatory and Advocacy at Association for Data-Driven Marketing and Advertising (ADMA). With nearly two decades of experience in communications law and public policy, her expertise covering areas including privacy, copyright, online safety and content regulation.

Most recently, she served as Director of Policy and Regulatory Affairs at the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), where she supported member organisations and the global IAB network on key legal and policy matters shaping the digital advertising ecosystem.

She has also held leadership roles including Head of Legal and Regulatory Affairs and Joint Company Secretary at Free TV Australia.